Tag: Advocate Tertius Wessels

In a significant move aimed at improving workers' livelihoods across South Africa, the government announced a new minimum wage. This new wage will take effect on 1 March 2025. This change will impact a wide range of industries. Employers must familiarise themselves with the new regulations and ensure compliance.

Navigating political affiliations in the workplace is a complex task for South African employers. There are valuable insights on this topic, emphasizing the importance of maintaining political neutrality to foster a harmonious work environment. 

As the countdown to the implementation of the new minimum wage draws closer, the nation finds itself at the precipice of a profound transformation in its labour landscape. With revised minimum wage regulations set to come into force on March 1st, 2024, employers across the country are bracing themselves for a pivotal moment that promises to reshape the dynamics of work and remuneration. 

The Johannesburg Labour Court has sent a clear message that defying court orders will not be tolerated. In a recent decision, Magnus Loubser, a director at Spar in Polofields Crossing, Midrand, was fined R1 million for contempt of court for refusing to reinstate a worker who was unfairly dismissed.

The Johannesburg High Court has ruled that the current law regulating maternity leave, adoption leave and surrogacy leave in South Africa is unconstitutional and invalid, on the basis that it discriminates against different types of parents and violates their dignity and the interests of their children. 

In the age of pandemics and other socio-economic upheavals, relying on a single income may prove risky, especially as joblessness continues to rise, with Statistics South Africa reporting an unemployment rate of 32.5%, the highest it has been since the survey was initiated in 2008.

While the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA) has been in effect for a while, most employers are still not grasping the far-reaching consequences the Act poses on how they collect, store and dispose of information. POPIA affects so many aspects of the business such as the information technology systems, customer processes and information handling practices. Therefore, POPIA cannot be ignored.

The pandemic brought with it a slew of realisations for business owners, one such an epiphany is how most organisations need fewer employees to remain functional. But using COVID-19 as a reason for retrenching a surplus of employees constitutes as unfair dismissal.

Social Media represents one of the most significant developments in human communication and has undoubtedly changed the way we interact and share information. Social media has become a prevailing presence in our lives, including the workplace, and therefore poses a significant risk to the reputational integrity of employees and employers.

For most labour brokers and their clients, the new judgement by the Constitutional Court – which determines that TES employees are deemed permanent employees of the client after a three-month period – it means business as usual.